Sanders and Bannon to Address Washington Event on AI Curbs

Sen. Bernie Sanders and Steve Bannon will share a stage Tuesday in Washington at the Pro-Human Assembly, a daylong event pushing Congress to slow the unchecked spread of artificial intelligence. The gathering, hosted by the Future of Life Institute, draws an odd mix of voices all warning that machines are racing ahead of human control.

The independent senator from Vermont and the former Trump adviser rarely agree on anything. Their joint appearance underscores how AI has begun to scramble old political lines. Organizers released 33 principles in March that call for humans to stay firmly in charge, for people to keep their liberty and agency, and for AI companies to face real accountability. Speakers plan to hammer those points to lawmakers who have so far moved slowly on federal rules.

Bannon used his Monday broadcast to blast the hands-off approach in the White House. He said corporate money explains why federal lawmakers are trying to stop states from writing their own AI restrictions. "The American people are not going to be supplicants to these tech oligarchs," he told listeners. The remarks mark a clear break with President Trump on the issue.

Fresh warnings from inside the industry have added fuel. Last week an Anthropic researcher quit, stating that many people building advanced systems believe the technology could kill everyone by the end of the decade. Those comments, along with calls from other executives to hit the brakes, helped trigger a sharp drop in AI-related stocks on Monday.

The event comes as senators continue to debate legislation that would block states from regulating high-risk AI systems. Earlier attempts to limit state action failed, yet the push for a federal preemption keeps resurfacing. Meanwhile, communities across the country are already dealing with the physical footprint of the technology, including the power-hungry data centers sprouting in rural areas.

Sanders has long argued that new tools should serve workers rather than replace them. Bannon has focused on the national security and sovereignty risks of letting a handful of Silicon Valley firms dominate the field. Both men now see the same core problem: decisions that shape daily life are being made by executives who answer to shareholders, not citizens.

The assembly will feature other speakers from varied backgrounds, all making the case that speed is outpacing safety and that ordinary people are left with little say. Whether the unusual pairing produces any legislative movement remains to be seen, but the fact that the two sides are talking at all shows how deep the unease over AI has already spread.